(smow) blog compact Milan 2014 Special: Meike Langer and Karoline Fesser at Salone Satellite

One of the stand out objects for us in the Young Perspectives exhibition shown in Boffi’s Cologne flagship store during Cologne Design Week 2014 was the clothes stand Blanche by Frankfurt based Meike Langer.

And so it was a real joy not only to be reacquainted with Blanche in Milan, but to see Blanche’s new shoes. Or more precisely put, new foot.

Crafted from ash and steel tubing Blanche has an abstract trombone feel about it and is, in many ways, a refinement of the excellent Beaugars seat-cum-clothes stand that Meike presented as part of the 2011 d3 design talents exhibition at IMM Cologne. Whereas the base of Blanche’s steel component was simply laid on top of a wooden base at Young Perspective, Meike has now inverted the foot making the ash the dominant element and in doing so created a much more optically pleasing structure that gives Blanche a touch more grace than she previously had.

Sentiments that could also be applied to All Wood Stool by Meike Langer’s Milan standmate Karoline Fesser.

When premièred at Objects and the factory at Cologne Design Week 2014, All Wood Stool was a relatively quadratic beast, resembling something hewn from a metal girder. A form that fitted perfectly with the theme of Objects and the factory: Objects and factories.

Post-Cologne Karoline has rounded the design to create a much more subtle, sympathetic and for all symmetric object that impresses through its mix of handwork and technical proficiency.

In addition to the All Wooden Stool and Blanche, Meike and Karoline presented a selection of new works including Emplie, a delightful wood/steel modular storage system by Meike Langer and Tête-à-Tête by Karoline Fesser, an ingenious system that combines bowl and cover in one practical and aesthetically pleasing object.

More details on the designers and their works can be found at www.meikelanger.com and/or www.karolinefesser.de

A few impressions from Milan